The present invention related generally to support poles mounted floor to ceiling. In particular, the present invention relates to an exercise pole that may be temporarily mounted floor to ceiling.
There exist a variety of poles that may be mounted floor to ceiling as well as poles that may be mounted between parallel vertical surfaces (e.g., a shower rod). In most cases, the floor to ceiling poles are arranged either to serve as support structures as, for example, in modern cubical spaces, or to hold objects in static position as, for example, a bicycle holder. These poles are particularly well-adapted to temporary and rapid placement throughout an interior building space. In many applications, poles are erected and then subject to static loads—holding objects or holding a position of an object. Static loads may be accounted for in design and require much less structural strength that a similar load applied dynamically. Thus, for example, a bicycle pole designed to hold 3 or fewer bicycles may be capable of withstanding the combined static weight of more than 3 bicycles in the vertical axis, but may not withstand a similar weight applied dynamically in the horizontal axis. In this example, the ability to withstand horizontal forces is not required. However, in an application where dynamic loads in the horizontal direction are needed as, for example, in an exercise environment where the pole is used not only for balance, but for strength training, it would beneficial to have a floor to ceiling pole that can withstand horizontal dynamic forces.
There exists, in today's fitness market, a surge in exercise equipment that is rapidly evolving to meet society's changing lifestyle. Exercise equipment ranges from expensive single purpose machines to inexpensive isometric devices like bungee cord pulls. An example of an inexpensive, yet extremely useful device is the dance barre employed by ballet dances for many years. A typical dance barre comprises a horizontal barre that is either a permanently installed or freely standing device. A barre is useful to assist a dancer to hold her balance while practicing and stretching in ways that would not be possible unassisted. While a dance barre can typically withstand dynamic loading, its configuration (e.g., horizontal installation) limits the use to more traditional dance exercise.